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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Common Op. don't be ridiculous. Thousands of colleges out there.[/quote]

Most of which are not worth going to if you are from an UMC family with a long history of attending top colleges and certain expectations, like coming from a top private school.  Those of you who keep posting this flip can let your kids to no name and mediocre schools but for some people that’s just not acceptable. [/quote]

Better get used to it.[/quote]

My current senior is going to a top school, just like her siblings, thanks.

I just think those of you spouting the “thousands of colleges” being acceptable for DC area students don’t have a clue about how things are in certain circles of our country.  Or maybe you are being deliberately obtuse.  Most of those 1,000 colleges will never be acceptable to certain people. And they don’t have to be as they aren’t intended for those people.  Of course there are a handful or two of less competitive schools that are fine for kids of these folks who aren’t academically strong or have learning challenges but for the most part there is a subset of acceptable schools and that won’t change. That’s what you are seeing on the DCUM college thread that seems to drive some posters crazy - the ones who keep posting the tripe about there being “thousands of colleges” and “people need to stop focusing on the same 50 schools” etc...  You are trying to defeat the very heart of these people’s views on college - people whose families have been UMC and UC for generations, whose grands and greatgrands had degrees from top colleges, whose families have always invested in education and expect the next generation to do that same. It just is what it is. No point in trying to convince those folks differently. [/quote]

I'm so sorry for them. That's terrible. There aren't enough spots for these kids. Some of them will have to find another path.  Ivy/Ivy+ or bust is a recipe for heartbreak for most kids. [/quote]

And a really stupid recipe at that.  Once you get your first job (other than in a few fields---high level investing/PE is one area) it really does not matter where you went.  It's what you did in college that matters, and what you do at the job. My first kid went to at T100 school, and the program was rigorous, with the honor program being even more rigorous for those who are up to that challenge (not my kid). all of my DC's friends are gainfully employed or onto graduate school (that's over 25 students).  Some in at top graduate schools and medical schools. You do not have to attend top 20 schools to be successful.  
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This once you get your first job nonsense has to go.  Going to Harvard or Yale or Princeton stays with you and matters even if you work in the DPW picking up trash --- will matter when you go for supervisor and later head of department.  Does it determine how you will do in life -- of course not.  Tones of colleges will work.  But just as it is not Harvard or bustr please do not believe that it no longer matters after first job.[/quote]

Really, if I'm working as a trash collector, I will get further ahead if I went to Harvard?  What are you smoking? In your scenario I've graduated from Harvard and working as a trash collector actually picking up trash and use my Harvard degree to move up the supervisor ladder and to dept head of trash collection?  So extremely glad I graduated from Harvard to do that.  Somehow I think there are more important issues---such as why the hell did I graduate from an Ivy League school yet I'm working as a trash collector(something that barely requires a HS degree).

I've lived life and nobody has ever asked where I attended college after my first job.  Hell, for my first real job nobody asked either, but that was because it was the direct result of 2 summer internships with the same dept, so they knew my work (and I guess where I had attended college) and happily were waiting to hire me full time.  Switched jobs 2 years later and what mattered was my references from my first job, not where I attended college.  Never once was I asked about college or where I went in my 3 interviews for the 2nd job.  So while it might have still been on my resume at only 2 years out of grad School, nobody asked/discussed it.  Instead they discussed my qualifications and work experience as a normal person would expect to happen.  So yes had I attended Harvard and someone interviewing me had gone to Harvard, perhaps it might have swayed them a bit to liking me over someone else.  But ultimately, I'd hope a Harvard educated person would not just hire me cause I also have a Harvard degree---I'd hope they could look at my real qualifications and make a decision based on that.

Only way attending Harvard/Y/P matters is if I need one of my buddies to call a future boss and put in a good word.  Same for all jobs after the 2nd job.  Nobody cared where I attended college.  What matters is how I performed at my previous jobs and my references.

Yes, your connections at HYP/etc will give you a network of people willing to help you, so will many other colleges. Penn State has a large network, so does Purdue, UMich, VATech, UVA, etc.  Plenty of highly successful people graduate from non-ivy/T20 schools and go on to do great things.

So you go on thinking your Harvard degree matters to most people once you are over 25 yo.  [/quote]

The thing is, PP, you don't mention what your job is. And it doesn't sound like you went to or intend to go to a strong graduate program. I work in the arts and I agree, nobody cares where anybody went to college. But for people who want to go into more competitive fields, where one's degree came from does matter. Your argument is very effective.[/quote]

Actually you would be wrong on the graduate program I attended.  I followed my CS/Engineering path for a career, but also have a 2nd major in the arts and have pursued teaching that as well decades later.  My advanced degree is in CS/Engineering from one of the Top 5 schools for CS (a school that has been T5 for decades--think MIT/Stanford and this school).   While there I interacted/took classes with students in the elite MBA program as well during my time there.   So I hold 2 undergrad degrees from a T10 university and a graduate degree from a T20 (but T5 for CS, heck likely T3).  I'll agree that for a few areas, where you went to undergrad matters, but even then Harvard Business school is not all Ivy League undergrads.  Plenty of people from T100 schools (or lower) go on to graduate school at top universities in many areas.   Because it's what they did in undergrad that matters---the research they did, the references from their professors is what helps get them in along with their academic record and possible work experience.  The people who "where you go matters" most are the first generation student.  For them, their family does NOT have any connections typically, so they benefit the most from a T20 school.  For a full pay student who has been striving for getting into a t20 school since they were 5, they already have a lot of connections and guidance  from their family

Parents and students should not think that attending a T10 school is necessary for a great future.  I look around at my partner's company (and the previous one's they worked at as an executive) and most of the management team got their degrees at "basic" universities---only 1 or 2 have degrees from "elite" or even T50 universities.  Yet they are all top level executives in their field.  In fact many started at universities most would not have even heard of (so definately not T100).  Yes, it might help a bit, but 95% of getting further in life is because of the hard work you put in and the connections you make. Want to go to grad school?  Then get involved in research early in undergrad and get to know your professors, so they can write a glowing review for you.  [/quote]

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